The Yusuf Ahmed Story
Who is Yusuf Ahmed. I am a 65 year old Muslim. I was not always a Muslim. I was born in Brooklyn, New York. I have lived in New Your, New Jersey, Florida, Virginia, and California. I was raised a Catholic. I practiced this religion until I was about 15, then I stopped practicing any religion until about 30. Between the ages of 30 and 52, I spent time studying protestant religions in the US. It was also during this time that I had the opportunity to travel a lot in China. While there I married an Chinese lady and started to study and practice Buddhism.
I also traveled a lot from the time I was 18 until I settled down in Saudi Arabia when I was 58. My travels took me to several countries in Latin America. I also traveled in Korea, Australia, Canada, Singapore, and Iceland. In my early twenties I lived for three years in London. All of these experiences left me feeling that there was still some thing missing in my life.
When I was in my late thirties I started working in a company where I had many Muslim co-workers. I had the opportunity to begin to learn about Islam from them. I traveled a lot with these co-workers, all over the world, and I was always impressed with how important their religion was. Their devotion to their religious duties never waivered even when we were in places like Holland.
In 1990 I started traveling to Saudi Arabia for business. It was during this time that I really began to explore Islam. It took me ten years of study, reading, and asking questions that I began to understand that I needed to be a Muslim. In 2001 I started to study in a serious way to became a Muslim. It was in the end of August 2001 that I made my Shadda. Becoming a Muslim has changed my life for the better in so many ways. Allah knows what is best for each of us and guides us to make the best decisions in his time. I am grateful that I was given the chance to accept Islam. I now hope and pray the you, dear reader, may find the peace and blessings of Allah as I have.
It is my hope that this web site will act as clearing center for my Muslim Brothers and Sisters. I have tried to provide links to useful information about Islam and the Middle East. I also hope that any person living outside the Middle East will find references to our history and culture. There is also a need to identify alternate sources of news and information.